Manhattan GMAT vs Kaplan

I too am located in the same area as you. I signed up for Kaplan in Santa Monica and they ended up canceling the class and transfering me to the Westwood class. At first I was angry, but I decided to sit in on the westwood class and I'm REALLY glad that I did. I had a great experience, with a 570 on my first diagnostic and a 710 on test day. I did the once a week class for 9 weeks, and it was NOT the advanced class. I would say the class had about 20 students, and there was as much help as you needed. The online material was AWESOME, and tracked EVERYTHING you did. I also found the Kaplan practice tests to be very representative of the actual test and actual test day score. Also, my teacher would grade my AWA essays AND I was able to take a practice test at the actual Pearson Center (something no other company can provide). Having a testing experience at the testing center in Gardena was priceless. I scored 690 on that practice test (highest to date) and then 710 five days later in the same seat, same cubicle, same everything. Felt great. I decided to supplement my studies with the Manhattan GMAT books, and ended up getting through about 4 of the quant books. It was great to see things from two different points of view.

If you are only looking in Santa Monica, I might go with Manhattan b/c their class didn't get canceled like mine did. I've also had two friends take their class and like it and do well (both strong educational backgrounds). I've heard that they are a little more concept based while kaplan is more strategy based. I LOVED the strategy side of it because there was so much to learn and so many free points out there if you study right, and Kaplan definitely had the material to cover all concepts as I needed. Plus I purhcased the manhattan books and went through the entire OG guide (minus some of the reading comp) (see my post here on some strategies: 10-tips-to-improve-your-score-app-with-no-extra-studying-124393.html?fl=home)

If you do go with either class, just remember that the class is no golden ticket. You have a TON of outside work you need to do in order to increase your score. Stay on top of it all, and take full advantage of EVERYTHING they give you. I spent about 15-20 hours a week outside of the class with my nose in the books, doing practice tests, and covering material. Having an on-site class really helps guide your studying and keep you on track. There was so much confidence I built there. If you do Kaplan, ask for Mike Raben. HE WAS THE MAN!

If you have any further questions feel free to PM me.